FAYETTEVILLE — As Arkansas takes a week off to recalibrate and prepare for Battle Line rival Missouri, there is still a list of questions from a personnel perspective moving forward.
First-year head coach Ryan Silverfield probably thought he had quite the budget to spend last offseason, but wasn't quite able to acquire the talent he needed to improve his program much.
At 3-4 overall and a 1-3 record in SEC play, the Razorbacks are starting to look competitive in games, nearly knocking off No. 11 Tennessee at home two weeks ago. During a time when student-athletes are getting paid and could've phoned in the remainder of the season, it's nice to see a team playing with pride each week.
But playing with pride can only get a coach so far in the SEC, and Silverfield probably understands that better now than at any point in the season. He's going to need more studs, and the only way to get them is by using the funds that he raised himself along with a pocket of cash from revenue sharing to get Arkansas in firm position to punch itself into the middle part of the SEC.
To get there though, he's not going to have to perform a complete overhaul. But he's going to have to pay the ones he has to keep while also finding a way to get the prized transfers out of the portal.
Here are the five positions Silverfield will need to target to have a chance at competing in the SEC next season.
Quarterback
Look around the SEC's other first-year coaches, aside from Pete Golding at Ole Miss, and there's one common trait. Lane Kiffin, Alex Golesh, Jon Sumrall and Will Stein all used the portal to bring in a quarterback who can jumpstart their tenure.
Sam Leavitt, LSU: No. 1 transfer QB (2,055 yards of offense and 21 total TD)
Byrum Brown, Auburn: No. 8 transfer QB (1,644 yards of offense and 13 total TD)
Aaron Philo, Florida, No. 11 transfer QB (1,455 yards of offense and 12 total TD)
Kenny Minchey, Kentucky: No. 17 transfer QB (1,567 yards of offense and 14 total TD)
KJ Jackson has experienced an up-and-down season as a first-time starting quarterback in the SEC, completing 131-of-215 pass attempts (61%) for 1,444 yards, 10 total touchdowns, and seven total turnovers. However, Saturday night against Vanderbilt was his best performance of the season and coincided with his first SEC victory.
While it may still be early to declare him as a potential transfer at the end of the season, the 6-foot-4, 225 pound passer could opt to return and battle for the starting role again in the offseason. But his accuracy, downfield production and overall consistency have limited the Arkansas offense.
There will be some significant movement in the portal when it opens in January with Texas quarterback Arch Manning and Michigan's Bryce Underwood possibly headlining the class as guys looking for a fresh start.
That's not to say Arkansas would be in position to land either of them, but there's a strong possibility this will be one of the wildest markets of all-time, and Arkansas needs to get in the race. It's possible that the amount of cash quarterbacks are expected to be marketed will be more than the $3-4 million form last offseason, which will require Arkansas to pay a premium to improve its quarterback room.
Linebacker/EDGE
Former 4-star linebacker Bradley Shaw has been a disappointment this season as one of the team captains, but that could be attributed to him dealing with an injury that sidelined him against Georgia.
Out of all the Arkansas linebackers who played significant snaps at Vanderbilt, Shaw graded out the worst at 53.3 overall defensively. However, he was a steady force against the run which ranked him No. 5 on the team, according to Pro Football Focus.
Coaches did well in their evaluations of starting linebackers Ben Bogle and Ja'Quavion Smith, which does speak well for them if they decide to prioritize a couple of highly rated linebackers in the portal.
Smith does have another season left to play, and junior reserve linebacker Wyatt Simmons has two years left to play and has seen a significant role on special teams.
The way defensive coordinator Ron Roberts uses his defense, he utilizes a 3-4 base with a nickelback who serves in a STAR role and a hybrid defensive end who is considered a JACK, who can rush the passer and defend in coverage.
Steven Soles has provided some form of steadiness at the JACK, but Roberts doesn't have enough depth behind him. That'll force Arkansas to be active in pursuit of at least one top-15 pass rush specialist and possibly two ranked inside the top-30.
Both Quincy Rhodes and Steven Soles are valued at more than $1 million, according to the NIL Standard. Obviously it'll take a greater budget to lure exceptional talents along the edge.
Offensive Tackle
If Arkansas decides to rebuild its offensive line, it's going to take pursuing quality replacements on the edges. Arkansas has struggled to run the football and protect Jackson from outside pressure in the first half of the season, although they have trimmed things up a bit in recent weeks.
Left tackle Kavion Broussard has performed well against non-conference opponents, but has struggled against SEC competition.
The same can be said for Bryant Williams, who entered the season as the starting right tackle. He's played a total of 11 snaps over the past two weeks behind former backup Adam Hawkes, who put together a solid day against the Commodores.
None of the three has established himself as a dependable long-term solution entering 2027. Market value for a quality tackle will potentially be around $1.5 million plus this cycle, and Arkansas will likely be looking for one on each end of the line of scrimmage.
Wide Receiver
The Razorbacks are going to be in dire need of extra playmakers on the perimeter and won't be able to just snag one out of the portal this go around. Star wideout Chris Marshall is valued at a reported $872,000 this season, according to NIL Standard.
There's only nine receivers valued for more than $1 million, which shows Arkansas can probably snag one veteran and a couple other quality playmakers out of the portal for around $3-4 million this offseason. That certainly seems high, but it would be worth it at the end of the day.
Running Back
A capable running back in the SEC isn't going to cost an arm and a leg to get on campus with only three valued at $1 million; two of them are on one roster (Texas) in Hollywood Smothers and Raleek Brown.
Senior transfer Sutton Smith ranks No. 4 in the SEC at a reported $634,800 value, but hasn't quite lived up to the lofty number given as he's second on the team in rushing with 54 carries for 195 yards and one touchdown this fall.
The flip side to all this is that out of the top 10 transfer running backs from the latest cycle, only Caleb Hawkins (No. 2 overall RB) ranks in the top-20 nationally in rushing with 592 yards and two touchdowns.
Each of the top four rushers and six of the top 10 have been with their teams for at least two seasons.
Arkansas should pursue a potential every-down back while retaining Braylen Russell and Cam Settles. But none of that is going to matter unless there are considerable improvements made at the line of scrimmage to open up holes for them to run through.
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